Hanging Tough
by AdamPascalFan
Summary: EPISODE 4x04 SPECULATION INCLUDED! Blaine and Kurt are both certain that it will be a long time before they see or speak to each other again after Blaine's disastrous visit to the city. Neither one factored in The X-Factor. Or Boy Bands. Or Cooper Anderson. cowritten with Spookykat
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: NO I AM NOT DEAD! The muse was there for a minute! But she's back and inspired by Boys/Boyfriend. (Who wasn't really?) Anyways as the summary said...speculation for 4x04 so if you are anti-spoiler WAIT TO READ. I MEAN IT. And check the note at the end of the chapter k? Once again co-written by Spookykat because I love her!**

"Kurt!" Rachel cried. Kurt winced, making a mental note to get sound-canceling earphones. Even though they lived in a loft, Kurt still hadn't been able to convince Rachel there was no need to yell to get his attention. He barely lifted his eyes from the proofs Isabelle had sent him home with that evening. Anything less than Rachel attempting to burn down their kitchen (again) was going to have to wait. This new article was scheduled for publication tomorrow and the pictures had to be right. He did not want to deal with the wrath of the a million teenage girls if the wrong picture of the newest It Boy was sent for publication. The internship was exciting, but it was also proving to be a lot of pressure. He was not burying himself in work to distract himself from his break-up a few months ago. Not at all.

Rachel was waving her hand from the corner where they had placed the TV set Rachel swore she just found on her way home from class one day. "You need to come see this."

"No Rachel, I really don't need to see what tragedy Demi Lovato has decided to pass off as fashion this week." He could not understand Rachel's new obsession with _The X Factor_. Did she not get her daily quota of judgment from Carmen Tibideux and Cassandra July? And honestly, the wardrobe person responsible for dressing Brittney Spears and Demi should be fired. And then shot. The pink hair streaks. The pink dress with illusion netting. Unless she was going to a costume party dressed as Jem from the old cartoon? Just no.

It wasn't lost on Kurt that Rachel's obsession with the talent show coincided with her final break up with Finn. He was just being a good friend to not mention the timing is all. His own new-found obsession with _Days of Our Lives_ had absolutely nothing to do with Blaine's disastrous visit a few months ago. His new viewing habits had everything to do with the obvious EJ/Will sexual undertones (because _seriously_ with those two) and nothing to do with needing something else to think about. And besides he wasn't obsessed. Checking message boards, Facebook, Twitter and Live Journal multiple times a day was just a way to relieve stress at work.

"Kurt you really need to see this." Rachel insisted as the show chose that moment to start up with _Don't Start Believing _in the background. The sheer number of cheesy "inspirational" songs the producers played in the background made Kurt wonder if Mr. Schuester wasn't a long lost relative of one of the producers.

"Rachel, I've seen Simon Cowell in a tight t-shirt before. That crush is so 2003."

"It's not about Simon although this particular shirt is working rather well for him." Rachel shook her head. "It's about who I'm seeing in the lines for the Kansas City auditions."

"Unless it's Lady Gaga herself, then I'm really not interested. Now I have to concentrate or I'll be crucified for picking the worst possible shot of Devin Liam Taylor Josh Whatever his name is."

"I think I see Blaine, Artie and Joe in line to audition."

Kurt had to admit that was a bigger attention-getter than Lady Gaga herself. "What do you mean you _think_ you see them?" he asked as he made his way across the loft. "You said this was Kansas City. They're in _Lima"_

"The auditions were taped months in advance, over winter break. I considered auditioning when they were in New York but I didn't think it was fair to my fellow competitors to compete with my advance training and talent. And we didn't see them all Christmas break."

To be perfectly correct, Kurt hadn't seen Blaine at all during the break. He managed to see Artie and Joe at least twice at Tina's reunion Christmas party and Brittany's Dress as Lord Tubbington's Future Career New Year's Eve party, but to be honest he was too busy trying to catch up on the latest New Directions news from Tina to talk to either boy for very long. A major downside to the break up, outside of the whole _breaking up with Blaine_ aspect was having to wait to catch Tina for his daily gossip fix rather than Blaine live-texting him every juicy detail. "But that doesn't mean they were…"

Whatever protests Kurt was about to make died on his lips when he came close enough to see Rachel had not just lost her last tenuous grip of sanity. There on the TV screen was Blaine, Artie and Joe with Cooper, Mr. Abrams and who he assumed to be Joe's parents right behind them, signing in under the rather ridiculous name of The Brothahood (that choice had Artie written all over it). He sat down next to Rachel, ignoring her proud smirk for being right about him wanting to see this. "How did we not know about this? Why didn't Tina tell us?"

"Maybe she didn't know how much you wanted to know about Blaine's life? You two don't exactly talk to each other."

"His decision. Not mine." Kurt shot back, inwardly daring Rachel to repeat the whole _it was a mutual decision _bullshit excuse he had been saying for weeks now. In the end, he might have agreed to Blaine's reasoning but it didn't mean he had wanted to. He gestured towards the TV. "Besides it wasn't like Blaine was in town for me to talk to him. Obviously!"

Thankfully the producers had decided to concentrate on the made-for-Lifetime-movie story of the hard-working single mom with the talented son who just wanted to make her proud. If the story didn't already have Justin Bieber written all over it, the kid's choice to sing _Baby_ just pushed it that much further. Kurt wasn't stupid. If they had shown Blaine, Artie and Joe in the crowd shots, then he would be seeing them audition later on. But right now he was more concerned about why no one had thought to tell him of this development. They may have broken up, but that didn't mean Kurt didn't want Blaine to succeed and be happy.

The sound of Tina's ringtone _Circus_ coming from Rachel's phone was a welcome distraction from his thoughts. Finally he'd get some answers. He huffed impatiently as Rachel promised they were watching and gave a maddening series of "Really" responses to whatever Tina was saying and merely smiling at him. How could she be his best friend and be this insanely vague about everything?

"Alright. Call me tomorrow when you get the details." Rachel gushed as she hung up before glancing at the TV. "The reason Tina didn't tell us is because she didn't know. Apparently no one did and conveniently Artie, Blaine and Joe have their phones off. She's going to corner them tomorrow at glee club and she'll tell me all the details." She smiled at him. "Do you want me to call you right after or….."

The rest of her question died as she grabbed his arm. "Kurt! It's their turn!"

Sure enough, he could see Blaine, Artie and Joe introducing themselves to the camera (a good sign they had passed the audition for sure, Kurt noted. Not that he was seriously worried about them not passing. Just sometimes the judges' decisions on talent could be as blind as their wardrobe selections) and explaining they were all in glee club together and had recently formed the band on a lark. As Artie talked about how much music meant to all three of them and how it had bonded them, Kurt had to smile at Cooper giving Blaine smiling tips in the background. He could only imagine the conversation that wasn't taped. "_No Blainey. That looks like you're constipated! Think more of what you're going to eat for lunch and remember don't look the judges in the eyes! And don't forget to point!_ _Pointing is essential to convey sexiness. It made John Travolta famous! Squirt, are you paying attention here? You can't go out there and not point. How will they know I'm the mastermind of all this?" _

The trio moved to the backstage area with their guitars and Joe's mother (a woman in a painfully ugly dress that reminded Kurt of Rachel's sweaters when New Directions first started) rather sweetly told all three of them that they are already winners in her eyes. Kurt really did try to not find the neck roll thing Blaine always did before he walked on stage to do a performance so cute because they were exes now and he was pretty sure not finding your ex's things cute was a rule but he was only human.

Plus, Rachel practically cooed when she saw it so it wasn't so much him missing Blaine as it was making sure Rachel wasn't making a fool of herself.

The crowd cheered when all three of them made their way out on the stage. Kurt chuckled as a look that was combination pity and patronizing crossed all four judges' faces when they spotted Artie. There was nothing Artie liked better than wiping that look off of peoples' faces with the sheer strength of his personality. Both Simon and LA made an appropriately horrified face when Joe gave the group name, causing the audience to laugh.

"And what are you gentlemen going to be singing for us today?" Simon asked.

"_Sexy Back_ by Justin Timberlake" Blaine nodded. His confident front man persona was firmly in place as he started to sit on the stool a stagehand rushed out for him and Joe.

Predictably the show would choose to zoom in on Britney's reaction to this news even with her fiancé in clear view behind her. Kurt was in no way surprised either when Artie started the song off with the "You ready" raps. He was impressed by the way they slowed down the song just enough to make it interesting on the guitars but not so slow it was boring. And the three part harmonies the boys took on the bridge and chorus would have made Wes and the Warblers' council proud.

As the girls in the audience started to scream and the judges started to realize the guys on the stage could really sing and weren't just relying on Artie's wheelchair to get them through, they slowed down the song even more and threw in a little _My Love_ with Joe hitting a falsetto causing the girls to go even crazier. The camera quickly cut to Cooper, Mr. Abrams and Joe's parents watching backstage and hugging each other excitedly. Well,_ Cooper_ was hugging everyone excitedly. The other adults grinned and let themselves be attacked.

As they hit the final chord, Kurt couldn't help but join in the applause that was happening on screen. He would feel more ridiculous if Rachel wasn't actually cheering as if they could hear her, so he felt a little superior to that. He at least had sense. As Blaine, Artie and Joe basked in the reception, Kurt fleetingly wondered if Mr. Schuester was seeing this and somehow thinking this was all thanks to him. Probably because they used a mash up and Mr. Schue did seem to think he invented that.

"The Brothahood!" LA Reid nearly yelled into the microphone. "You brought the sexy back and then some. I know Justin Timberlake and he would love, love, _love_ what you did with that!"

"I thought that was really great what you did with that song." Britney chimed in next. "It was really fresh and original. I really liked your harmonies."

"What I like about you guys is your energy and the way you are just so likable. I love you. I want you to come on tour with me right now." Demi nearly pounded the table to the ground with her excitement.

"I must admit you surprised me. I've heard that song many many times and you made it interesting to me. Well done." Simon drawled. "But now for the important part. We still must vote. LA?"

"Oh it's a yes." Joe jumped so high he nearly crashed into Artie's wheelchair.

"Britney?"

"Yes" Artie started to fist pump while Joe and Blaine move closer together around Artie.

"Demi?"

"Of course it's a yes." The full-out excited grin Kurt was used to seeing on Blaine when he was really thrilled with something (or someone, not that he was thinking about that) came out in full effect. Kurt was not going to be surprised if there were girls on Tumblr right now making GIFs of this moment and declaring their love for Blaine.

Not that he was planning on checking on that in a few minutes or anything.

They had enough yeses to make it to the next round but Simon still had to have his say. As the crowd screamed its approval, Artie, Blaine and Joe still huddled together as if this could send them all home. "It's a yes." Simon finally announced.

Backstage, the parents hugged each other as Cooper jumped around and grabbed the unfortunate female stage-hand that passed him and planted a kiss on her. Oh that wasn't going to make the blogs in the morning at all. Thankfully, the kiss ended before Joe and Blaine appeared at the stage entrance helping to lower Artie's chair down the steps. All three of the McKinley boys were surrounded in a sea of hugs and congratulations.

As the judges talked about possibly finding the next One Direction in Kansas City, the last shot of the trio was of them leading their families out of the theater while Artie started to chant about The Brothahood was in the house!

As Simon and LA discussed how the group was good but the name really had to be changed, Rachel flipped the sound to mute and looked at Kurt expectantly. "Well?"

"I hope they listen to Simon and LA and change the name. Something that awful could only have come from Artie. Or Cooper." Kurt shuddered as a third possibility occurred to him. "Or Cooper and Artie came up with it together."

"That's all you have to say? If I turned on the TV and saw Finn performing on a national television show…"

"You'd no doubt have the perfect song ready to express your many complicated and deeply-felt emotions at this rather rare turn of events?" Kurt raised one eyebrow and silently dared her to deny he was right.

"_You Don't Bring Me Flowers_ is appropriate for many situations and I cannot help that Barbara's work seems tailor made for my overwhelming emotions and raw talent." Rachel smoothed an invisible wrinkle on her skirt. "But unlike me you don't recognize the importance of preparing for every possible performance opportunity. And I know seeing Blaine like that had to affect you."

"I'm not about to break into _The Man That Got Away_ if that's what you're worried about. " Kurt sighed as he laid his head back on the second-hand couch they had scored from a thrift shop two blocks over. "I should be surprised, but I'm really not. Blaine is talented. We both know that. I guess I just never expected him to try out for a reality show. And Artie's always liked to work with Blaine. Plus, he and Joe worked together for disco week last year. I'm more surprised Sam didn't try to horn in on it. I'm fine Rachel. Really. I'm happy for them."

Seeing Rachel shoot him a skeptical look, Kurt pushed himself off the couch. "I told you it was a mutual breakup and we're still friends. I'm fine with this."

"Friends? That's why you haven't been talking to him since the night it happened right?" A slow smile crept across Rachel's face, one Kurt recognized as the look she got when she thought she had an unbeatable point in an argument. "So you'll be letting him know how much you loved the performance I assume? Good feedback after all is critical to competition and I know how much Blaine values your opinion."

He really had walked right into that one. Not one to ever lose an argument Kurt pulled his phone out of his back pocket. "Yes. Right now as a matter of fact." He shot off a quick text before he could sit there and agonize over whether it was friendly enough to send to an ex. There was no way he was going to let Rachel see him panic over that.

"Great! Tell him I said congratulations and he needs to not hide behind the guitar. He can own the stage and he needs to in order to win."

"You can tell him yourself."

"Don't be silly. You are far closer to him than I am." Rachel waved her hand in protest. "And besides as a NYADA student any communication I may have with him could be seen an unfair advantage."

"And we don't want that." Kurt answered dryly as his incoming text notification sounded. Clearly, Blaine had turned his phone back on. On his screen was a simple two-word message, the most words they had exchanged in weeks.

_Thank you_.

A/N - want to see the cover of SexyBack we based this on? check out this video! watch?v=gzl3wXceGGY (Admit it...the name alone makes it worth it right?)


	2. Chapter 2

More than anything in the world, Blaine wanted peace and quiet. He was beginning to wonder why Rachel or anybody wanted to be famous. But then, Rachel and 'sane' did not belong in the same sentence without the words 'is not' in between. Being accosted by Jacob Ben-Israel was bad enough, and although Artie seemed to relish the screaming fan-girls, and Joe just sort of tolerated it, Blaine really wasn't ready for the mob that greeted him when he came to school that morning.

He wasn't even really anybody yet; just some guy who auditioned on a reality show, like the thousands of others who did the same. He was in the same class of celebrity as Bikini Girl, William Hung, and that one guy who performed the classic 'Pants on the Ground.' But already, he had to chase Jake and his Fling of the Hour out of the reference section just to find a place to hide, and was beginning to wonder if he needed to hire a security guard.

There wasn't even any time to delete the 8, 247 text messages and voicemails that were currently clogging up his inbox, and he needed a place to breathe. To think. His phone had been buzzing off the hook, and he dug it out of his bag to begin the task of deleting all of them.

March 13

9:01pm

Cooper: We are clearly going to have to work on your pointing between now and the live show

9:02pm

Cooper: HUNDREDS of new followers cannot be wrong, Blainey-bear. And HOLY HIGH-DEMAND, BATMAN! 7…make that 8…new calls for auditions thanks to my superior managerial style! I am awesome! WHAT DID I TELL YOU!? IT'S ALL ABOUT THE POINTING, BLAINEY! THE POINTING!

9:03

Rachel: Vocals as always were stellar! Although your choice was conventional, the arrangement was fresh and exciting, and you all blended shockingly well considering what the noise-level must've been in that performance space. I have Broadway selections that would be perfect for your range at the ready should you choose a showstopper with which to surprise the judges for your next number. And should you need a female performer to round out your sound, NYADA encourages professional breaks. ;)

9:04 PS. Brody says hello and sends you guys a big thumbs' up.

9:05 PPS. Kurt has forbidden me to talk to you about how he's been lately, so don't even ask, but in case you really want to know, he's gotten unhealthily addicted to _Days of Our Lives_ and has resorted to obsessing over message boards, reading Mature fanfiction online and it's kind of tragic, actually. But you didn't hear that from me. How are you doing?

9:06

Wes: Warbler Anderson, if I were a lesser man, I would take credit for those harmonies tonight. Absolutely superb! Looking forward to seeing what else you guys do…but seriously?! That name?! My gavel (if I still had possession of it), would've had something to say about that.

9:07

David: Never forget…KAZOOS ARE EVIL AND LEAD TO DEATH.

9:08

Thad: Good show, Blaine! Good show!

9:11

Jeff: Pavarotti is looking down from above and smiling. Also, please tell me this is some kind of massive, elaborate plan to get Kurt back.

9:12

Nick: The Brothahood is the most awesomest boyband name ever. Just sayin'.

9:15

Tina: I know your class schedule. I know your locker. I know your car. I know where you live. I WILL find out all the details including but not limited to how Simon Cowell smells, and I WILL NOT BE IGNORED.

10:16

Blaine to Tina: I know you're serious because you're unironically quoting Linkin Park. Also if I smelled Simon don't you think that would have made the show? THINK WOMAN.

9:17

Trent: Don't listen to David. He has a vendetta against Kazoos and I am beginning to think he should seek professional help for his apparent kazoo-phobia. In short, live dangerously. I for one think a whole number in kazoos might be just the ticket!

9:18

Brittany: Lord Tubbington ran away while X-Factor was auditioning. He tried out in Hawaii. He would've made it all the way, but didn't pass the background check.

10:19

BlainetoTina: Lord Tubbington would've been a tough act to follow. I am lucky he didn't make it past the background check. :)

9:20

Sam: Dude! I so could've joined you guys! I can definitely give the x-factor some sex-factor! Plus, my impression of Simon would totally win over the judges!

9:22

Puck: Dude, you're gay and I'm comfortable with my sexuality so I can say you're reasonably good-looking and I bet that's why you totally have Demi Lavato's number. Or maybe Brittany Spears? Wanna do a brother a solid and share the love?

9:31

Sebastian: Just extending a professional courtesy to inform you that I am officially stealing that rather genius arrangement for our upcoming Invitationals. If you want to arrest me for it, well, Hot-stuff, you're just going to have to cuff me yourself. Preferably with the fuzzy kind. Word on the street is Kurty-cat had you on a tight leash, but not in a good way. So if you're interested in a bit of an X-Rated adventure, you know where to find me. ;)

He rolled his eye and deleted most of them. He paused for a moment over Rachel's text about Kurt, though. He couldn't exactly blame Kurt for breaking up with him, and he hated that he was the one that caused all that pain. Blaine was fairly certain he'd deserve it if Kurt never spoke to him again, which is why he was so surprised to find one from him:

9:00pm: "Congrats on a great performance. You, Joe, and Artie were spectacular. But then, you always are. Although Brothahood?! Seriously, why do I have the sneaking suspicion Artie came up with that name?!"

Blaine stared at the text for what must've been a solid ten minutes. It was the most Kurt had said to him in months. The text wasn't at the top of the list. It wasn't on the bottom either, and Blaine wondered how much Kurt grappled with the decision to press 'send.' Although Kurt came back for the play, he wouldn't even make eye-contact with Blaine backstage after the show. There were no awkward run-ins during Thanksgiving or again at Christmas, because Kurt seemed to avoid him at all costs.

Not that Blaine could really blame him for that. After what Blaine had done, it was probably exactly what he deserved.

Kurt didn't even specify the comment just for him, and Blaine held no illusions that this meant Kurt was ready for forgiveness. Still, that didn't mean that Blaine hadn't struggled with what to say in reply.

In the end, he decided simple was best. It wasn't nearly enough to say everything he wanted, but maybe, just maybe, it would be enough to give him the chance to say more. He still hadn't received a reply back from Kurt yet, and several hours had past.

But now was not the time to wallow. He needed to prepare. Live shows were coming up, and he needed to be ready. He was not going to listening to _Payphone_ by Maroon 5 on loop wondering if it was a good idea to fly back to New York and serenade Kurt with that song at his office. He was _not_. He was listening to it for arrangement ideas.

Which was why a shrill voice from across the table nearly made him jump out of his skin.

"There you are Blaine Anderson, glee club leader and boy band member extraordinaire. Unique knows you didn't think you could hide from her this easily. The rest of the rag tag Brat Pack? Sure. But Unique? No honey. No."

Considering he was pretty sure no one outside of the librarian actually used the library in McKinley, Blaine didn't think his hiding spot was all that easy to find. Sam seemed to think it was a mythical land like Narnia. Plus the last bell had rang thirty minutes ago and the few students who did know where the library was had long since gone. "I wasn't hiding from anyone." Blaine defended himself rather weakly.

"Yes you are honey and that was before you went a kept the mother of all secrets from the rest of our happy dysfunctional family. But that is neither here nor there. The possibility of you being on the cusp of international stardom makes it very easy to forgive you." Unique leaned back in the chair she had rather ceremoniously sat herself down in across the table from him. "Although if you made it through boot camp, you best realize right here and now that you will need to facilitate an introduction to that glass of deliciousness known as LA Reid, I am here to educate otherwise if you don't."

"Not Simon? Everyone else seems to be in love with Simon."

"There is only room for one person to be right in a relationship and that is me. Now pack up your books and come with me. A man of your talent and looks won't need to rely on smart. We have places to be and people to see darling."

Blaine was never quite sure how she did it, but when Unique said march, people marched. Even though he was pretty sure following her would probably be a no-good horrible very bad idea (like allowing Cooper to pretend to be the band's manager levels of bad), he found him sliding his books into his messenger bag. "And where is this place we have to go to? Mr. Schue cancelled glee today."

"That is for Unique to know and you to follow and find out. Now hurry up. I want every delicious little detail about what LA looks like up close."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Yes we made a The New Normal referrence...Sorry we're not sorry!**

The only thing Blaine was sure of when Unique carted him off was that he wasn't going to the Land of Oz. Pulling into a neighborhood that would've made the likes of Donald Trump feel right at home, however, he suddenly found himself wishing he had ruby slippers he could click three times to go home.

Even though he knew that Sugar denied it every time it came up, Blaine was still not convinced. Her father had to be in the Mafia. Wasn't the first rule of the Mafia like the first rule of Fight Club? That you didn't talk about it? And weren't the wives and children always the last to know? The repeated viewings of _The Godfather_ Cooper made him watch during that really uncomfortable time his brother was convinced "brushing up on my Jimmy Caan" was his surefire ticket to nail his audition as "Hood #4" for _Hawaii 5-0_ had told Blaine at least that much.

Not to mention he was currently sitting in what appeared to be Sugar Motta's Wig Room with every conceivable color zebra print pattern as a color pallet. Blaine hadn't even known there was such a thing as neon chartreuse, but there it was on the wig stand staring at him from underneath the most terrifying selection of all the wigs. (Why exactly Sugar felt the need to have a replica of Beyonce's Afro from _Austin Powers: Goldmember_ was a mystery Blaine was quite content to leave a mystery.) And he didn't care how crazy it made him sound, that wig stand was staring at him.

As terrifying at the whole possessed demon wig thing was, it was much more preferable to hide there than the alternative, so he sat as comfortably as he could on the zebra-striped purple couch and took one of the awful lavender-colored throw pillows and slumped over the hard arm-rest. A part of him did realize it was very sweet of the rest of New Directions to throw a surprise _congratulations/tell us all the details about our celebrity crush in real life_ party, he just didn't want to deal with all the staring.

He had enough of it since that last weekend in New York, and right now nothing would please him more than to never be looked at again. Logically, he knew that didn't exactly jive with trying out for a reality TV show, but honestly, he hadn't ever thought they would make it through the initial audition with the producers. A dork in a bow tie, a guy in a wheelchair and dreadlocked Teen Jesus didn't exactly scream ready for primetime.

It had just been easier to agree with Artie's idea than to come up with a good reason against it. And he had been pretty sure "I just want to stay in my room and write sad emo songs about how much I screwed up my life" wasn't going to be taken as a good reason. After all, that was pretty much the reason he tried to give to avoid this whole boy band idea of Artie's.

And look how well that worked out.

Hearing the door open, Blaine sat up a little straighter. Like it or not, he was about to be dragged back to the party. He wondered who it was that they decided to send after him. Was it going to be Sam because he just had to show off his Simon Cowell impression? Tina who would hound him for details because Artie and Joe were terrible at remembering specifics? Brittany who would just look at him with those huge Bambi eyes so he wouldn't have the heart to tell her no outright? Apparently they had decided to throw a wild card in the mix and sent Marley, who stumbled into the room and couldn't seem to figure out where to look first. (The green and orange lamp shade was Blaine's vote)

"Marley?"

"Oh Blaine! I didn't see you…." Marley made a move to open the door that had shut behind her. "I just needed to get away for a minute. But you look like you want to be alone so I'll just…"

"Wait." Blaine started to stand up to stop her. "Tina didn't send you up? Sam? Unique? Artie? Brittany?"

"No. They all seemed involved in Joe's story about your brother thinking he was trying to convert him when Joe just wanted to know why he believed he was qualified to be a manager. I just needed to get out of there for a second." Marley shrugged and rubbed her hands down the sleeves of her flower printed blouse. "This house is a little overwhelming."

"Nothing like hiding in Sugar's wig room to change that feeling."

Marley smiled a little at his attempt at a joke but she didn't leave the room. She took a step closer to him and offered a sad smile. "So that's why I'm hiding. Why is one of the guests of honor hiding?"

"I didn't ask to be a guest of honor." Blaine pointed out, sliding back down the wall. Marley arranged herself next to him on the purple zebra-striped couch, and nudged him with her shoulder. "It's really sweet of everyone but I'm kind of tired of everyone staring at me right now. Or asking why I did something."

"I don't think anyone thought of that." She sighed softly pushing her hair behind her ears. "I mean maybe Kitty would, but she wasn't here for all that drama."

"Relax Marley. I know that The Big Break Up Week is forgotten ancient history as far as everyone else is concerned. I just didn't want my issues to ruin Joe and Artie's moment is all."

"I don't think they would mind," Marley offered up. "I think Artie might have noticed you were gone and that's why he wanted Joe to tell that story about your brother? He kind of brought it up out of nowhere."

"That's how Artie starts most of his ideas."

"Is that how you guys started this?" Marley asked before putting up her hands quickly. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I was just curious. It's not like we're really friends or anything so you know what, just forget I asked."

"I'd like to consider you a friend," Blaine offered quietly.

She had succeeded in staying out of the initial round of (deserved) crap he got from everyone started as soon as rumors of what led to his and Kurt's break up surfaced. He wasn't sure, but somehow he suspected Santana had been involved in that little bit of gossip spreading. After all, she had helped him with blocking his scenes for _Grease_ the week Sugar had been out sick. "I've been a terrible friend to everyone lately, but I do want us to be friends."

"Then make it up to me by telling me how this whole thing started. Then I'll know and it's a good excuse when Sugar notices we aren't admiring her portrait collection in the hall like everyone else is."

"But the one with her on a unicorn? Do you think they actually made a horse put a unicorn horn on its head or did she demand they find her the real thing?"

"Blaine come on." Marley tilted her head to the side. "You can't avoid it that easily. And besides I know you heard Sugar brag about her picture with a real live unicorn so you already know the answer to that one. Just tell me. What's so horrible? Did Artie blackmail you?"

"No. He just…..wouldn't take no for an answer." Blaine sighed as he remembered Artie and Joe meeting him at his locker the Monday after Thanksgiving with determined looks on their faces.

"_Hi guys. Have a good Thanksgiving?" Blaine asked as he spun the combination on his locker. He tried to keep himself from wincing at the newly empty spots where his pictures with Kurt had been. _

_A part of him knew taking them down was the right thing to do. It was torture to see them every day like that. But another part him really didn't care. Right now, he just didn't want to flinch in front of Joe and Artie. Artie might let him slide, but Joe was becoming almost as big of a gossip as Tina. Blaine blamed Brittney Spears week for that development._

"_Blaine, it has come to our attention that you may need some distraction from your current spiritual crisis and as your friends who love you just the way you are, God has divined an ideal opportunity." Joe placed his hand on Blaine's shoulder and looked at him so calmly Blaine almost felt guilty about having no idea what Joe as even talking about. And feeling slightly terrified._

_Artie wheeled a little closer, pushing his glasses up with his finger. "Fox announced The X Factor will have a spring season. I suspect it's to make the most out of the latest season of Sing. Nobody watches that train-wreck anymore, but Fox loves to milk the cash-cow."_

"_Hadn't heard that. I'm more of a Voice fan myself." Still not seeing what this conversation had to do with him at all, Blaine attempted to walk down the hall to his AP English class, but Joe and Artie followed right next to him._

"_While Adam Levine has surpassed Simon Cowell in the douchebag but hot category, that is not why we were bringing this fact to your attention." Most of the time Blaine was convinced Artie was completely heterosexual. And then there were days when he talked about his douchebag but hot category for male celebrities. "The X Factor is holding auditions in Kansas City over Christmas break and we are going." _

"_We? We who?" Blaine looked between Joe and Artie's smiling faces and felt his stomach begin to drop. "No. No. I am not auditioning for The X Factor."_

"_No __**you **__aren't." Artie agreed as Joe nodded along. "But __**we**__ are. The three of us are going to be the best damn boy band that show has ever seen."_

"They pretty much spent all day talking me into trying out." Blaine shrugged his shoulders. "Artie was convinced he'd be unstoppable with the ladies. There was apparently some big church convention in town right before it, so Joe was going to go anyway to check out the scene. And according to Artie, I am more depressing than the entire anthology of Morrissey and covering cheesy boy band songs, but making them super sexy was just the thing to break me out of it."

"And then we saw you kicking butt on the show." Marley smiled at him brightly. "I know you guys are going to do great. You already have my vote."

"You don't even know if we made it through boot camp yet."

"I've heard stories about your brother's master acting class last year. With him as your manager I don't know how you could fail."

Blaine gave her a wry grin. "Marley Rose are you being a smart ass?" He looked over to see her trying to hide her giggle. "It's a good look on you. You should try it more often."

"You should take your own advice about smiling." Marley shot back before glancing at her watch. "And we should probably get back before Sugar sends out a search party."

"One thing before we go. Do you think that's actually Beyonce's hair from _Austin Powers_? And do you think we can find a picture of Sugar wearing it before we go back to the party?"

"Busted!" Rachel called out in a singsong voice as Kurt belatedly tried to turn his laptop away from her prying eyes. "That's not work related from Isabelle. That's Tina's update on how The Brothahood came to be."

"You need to stop saying that. The next time I see Artie, the first thing I'm doing is slapping him for that horrible name. I know it was him." Kurt spun the chair around and squared his shoulders. "And so what if it is Tina's email? Am I not allowed to be curious about my friends' lives?"

"You weren't reading it to know what was going on with Artie and Joe. You were reading it to find out what was going on with Blaine."

"Rachel," he warned. "Drop it. I respect your decision to not talk about Finn. Can't you just mind your own business for once and return the favor?" Kurt stood up and went to their make-shift kitchen.

"But we will need to talk about it. You read Tina's email. You know how these shows work. If they're showing them in the auditions, they probably made it through at least boot camp, and If they make it through to the live rounds, she's going to organize a trip for us all to support them. And since you refuse to talk about why you broke up with Blaine, people are going to ask if you're coming. And if you say no, while I will support you, you won't just have me asking questions. You'll have Mercedes. And Tina. And possibly Santana. So you need to make a choice."


	4. Chapter 4

**Ok so we are getting more angsty than comedic at the moment but I promise it will get happier. After all Cooper is here...and you can't be sad around Cooper. **

"Oh come on, Rachel," Kurt said, turning on the kettle he brought from home to brew them a cup of tea. He wanted something stronger, and although he still had his fake ID from Ohio, that would have to wait for later. As it was, he had an early day at tomorrow and getting through Chase's rants about Honey Boo-Boo's fashion choices would be challenging enough without a raging hangover. "Given our little family, I honestly can't believe you didn't get the details when we went back home."

"Between family obligations and preparing for finals and for the crucial first juries at NYADA, I really didn't have much time to socialize."

"You're telling me you truly don't know?"

Rachel shook her head. "To be perfectly frank, after Thanksgiving, I kind of lost touch with our friends back home. I heard Finn took over for Mr. Schuester. After I cheated on him, there's no way they wouldn't take his side."

Kurt nodded. "I can sympathize. I was just texting Chandler and everyone decided to tell me in a Whitney Houston song exactly what they thought of that decision. Including you." Rachel winced. "Technically, you weren't cheating though. You were just…"

"Abandoning my veganism and trying to show off my apparently non-existent culinary skills for someone whom I knew had feelings for me? We were kissing before Finn showed up, Kurt. He had his tongue down my throat and I wasn't exactly saying no. Regardless of whether or not Finn was aware of that fact, it's still cheating. And on top of all that I couldn't be honest with Finn about what was going on. I just told him we were done, because truthfully, if I'd wanted Finn still, I would've refused his advances. Am I already so corrupted by the big, bad city that I can't be an honest, decent human being anymore?!"

Kurt inhaled sharply, making Rachel flinch. "So you're saying," he said as the kettle's shrill whistle rang throughout the apartment. "It's Finn's fault?"

"Kurt why are you…" she gasped. "Did Blaine cheat on you? Is that why you're so upset right now?"

Kurt nodded as he steeped the teabag with a spoon. "With some random guy he met on Facebook."

"Oh, Kurt," Rachel said, handing him the dishrag by the sink.

"It's just…I've been going over our whole relationship in my head a million times since it happened, and I know I was a little…excited about everything when I first came to New York and the internship, but…are you saying I drove Blaine away?"

"I didn't say that, Kurt," Rachel said, patting his shoulder. "You know last year how I told you that you make me want to be your boyfriend? Still applies."

"No, no…maybe I didn't win any Best Boyfriend Awards these days. I know I can be a little self-absorbed and I know the distance was hard on him. It was hard on me, too." He sighed, and took a sip of the tea. "We used to share everything, you know? And now all of a sudden, we didn't fit into each other's lives. Now I know how Jennifer Anniston must've felt. Before she found her current boyfriend, anyway. Great, now I'm going to have to go on Tumblr and Live Journal to post a formal apology and delete everything bad I said about her ever. I just…hate it, you know? I hate feeling like I messed up the one perfect thing in my life and I have stooped so low I've become a crazy person on the internet obsessing over a soap opera just to feel like I'm not so alone in the world. The worst part is, it's just hard to imagine anyone wanting me ever again, because before Blaine, nobody else did aside from Chandler. And that crazy guy on the M Bus nobody wanted to sit near, " he sniffled. "Now listen to me. I'm pathetic. I sound like Lindsay Lohan at the end of _Mean Girls_."

"Oh Kurt," Rachel said, squeezing his hand. "You're not pathetic. I just don't understand why you couldn't tell me before now."

"I guess as long as I didn't talk about it, it made it less real, you know? And I didn't want to make Blaine the enemy, you know?"

"Kurt," Rachel said, hugging him. "You're amazing, you know that? We're in the most amazing city in the world, and so what if we failed at our first relationships? It just part of the price you pay for being as fabulous as we are."

"Thanks for dragging me out of that wig room," Blaine said as they tried to find the hall. "I'm pretty sure that Beyonce wig was trying to use Jedi Mind control."

"I'm just glad I didn't wind up in a magical wardrobe at the mercy of some wicked Snow Queen offering me Turkish Delight. Although if it were me, I wouldn't be asking for Turkish Delight. I'd be asking for Vanilla Wafers Ooooh! With Nutella. Vanilla Wafers with Nutella with a Caramel Macchiato. I can't really afford to go to The Lima Bean very often, but once Jake took me and got me whatever it is they call the small size. Aaaand I'm officially rambling."

"So I take it you have a bit of a sweet tooth?"

Marley grinned.

"Just a little. My mom and I didn't have much money for presents, so we'd just spend the day baking and watching a VHS of _It's a Wonderful Life_. What's your family like?"

"Let's see…my mom spends most of her time away on business. Dad's…a very busy attorney who thinks the best way to "straighten me out' (he illustrated with air quotations) is to get me to rebuild old cars." Blaine shook his head. "I'm sorry…I'm not getting the sunshine award any time soon, I know. Kurt's dad was actually really awesome. Definitely more of a dad to me than my own. I miss going over there and watching the games with him sometimes, you know?"

"I bet if you asked him to do whatever it is guys do, he wouldn't say no."

Blaine shook his head. "After what I did to Kurt, I'm actually surprised he didn't come after me with a sawed-off shot-gun." Blaine shook his head. "Listen to me. I think I'm embracing my inner Eeyore a lot more than I'd like to lately."

"Hey," Marley said, patting his shoulder. "So you made a mistake. You're going through a rough patch. You don't have to be Mr. Sunshine all the time, you know? And at the end of the day, I kind of think we get to learn over and over again how to make it right, so it tends to balance out in the end. I know it sounds crazy, but it also doesn't mean you're public enemy number one forever, right?"

She cocked her head to one side as they made their way down the hall. "Sounds like Artie finally finished telling about how Cooper became the manager,"

"Oh no…" Blaine said, his face falling. "Look who crashed the party."

Marley shot him a sympathetic look as Cooper put both of his arms around their shoulders.

"You are way too pretty to be anybody's beard, little lady," he leered at Marley, who blushed an interesting shade of read.

"I just got lost going to the bathroom and we sort of ran into each other."

"Well, you're just in time!" Cooper announced Everyone was giggling around Artie's laptop as the opening strains of "_Your Kiss Is On My Lips"_ by Hall and Oates played.

"Cooper…you're not…" Blaine started, covering his face with his hands.

"Giving them proof that I was born to show you the path to greatness? Of course I am! Look how cute little Blainey was back then you guys!"

"Seriously, this is worse than baby pictures," Blaine moaned. Marley shot him a sympathetic look.

Blaine could feel his face growing warmer and warmer as a ten-year-old version of himself, lisping through the chorus as he and his brother danced on the leather furniture of their pristine living room. "Your kith, your kith is on my litht…."

The guys were trying hard to suppress their giggles, and Artie couldn't even succeed. The girls high-pitched chorus of 'aaaaws!' made Blaine in that moment he wish Invisibility Cloaks were within his price-range.

As difficult as it was to relive the horror of Blaine's last visit to New York, there was still work to be done for Isabelle, and he opened his laptop again, but was interrupted by the buzz of his phone, with 'Home' and a picture of Finn, Burt and Carole popped up on the screen.

"It's a little late for you to be calling, isn't it? Dad aren't you supposed to be in Washington?"

"In Ohio campaigning for Obama tomorrow, so I thought I'd come home for a little bit," Burt said. "How's the big city treatin' ya kid?"

"It's great!" Kurt said a little too brightly. "Rachel and I are having a lot of fun. The internship is keeping me busy…I told you Isabelle ate at Breadstix, right?"

"You did. How are you doing?"

"I can't really complain. I just…can't believe how well it's all worked out, you know? I got this really competitive internship when I didn't even have a college credit to my name, and Isabelle's awesome and all my colleagues are cool, and it's really…great."

"Actually, I'm calling because Carole told me Blaine was on some damn reality show on the old boob tube earlier, and I was wondering if you caught it?"

"Yeah, Rachel's kind of obsessed with that show. I thought they did great!"

"So it wasn't weird for you…seein' him up there singin' again like old times?"

"A little…but I went home for the play, you know? I saw him sing then, so it's not really a big deal."

"You two warm enough up there?"

"Yeah. It's actually a great loft. Can't wait for you guys to come visit sometime! There's a lot of natural light. I've cornered the market in shoestring chic."

"I have no idea what that means, but I can't wait to see it either, Kiddo. And you. Carole's been pesterin' me to talk to you, so I'm handing the phone over to her. Love you kid."

"Love you, too, Dad." There were five seconds of silence.

"Carole, how are you?"

"Oh honey! It's great to hear your voice! I couldn't believe it when I saw Blaine and Artie and that other boy…what's his name? Jim?"

"Joe."

"Right…Joe…singing in front of all those people and right there for Simon Cowell and everything and they were just fantastic, but honey, is it a little weird for you?"

Kurt shrugged. "He's up there doing what he does best. And from what I understand, our mutual friends sort of made him, I mean, believe it or not, in New Directions World, this isn't all that out-there."

"Blaine's such a nice young man. We miss having him around. Sam says he's kind of having a hard time with things. Apparently the only reason he auditioned was because they were trying to find a way to cheer him up over the holidays."

"I'll be sure to tell him that if we have an actual conversation."

"Oh, honey, you haven't even talked after all this time? I know break-ups are tough, but sometimes the only way to heal is just forgive and move on and try and rebuild a friendship. Take it from me. I was kind of an expert on break-ups before I met your father."

"I sent him a congratulatory text and he sent a 'thank you' in reply," Kurt said hopefully, finding it hard to believe that Carole was having a say in his love-life, too.

"Good. Keep the doors of communication open, sweetie. It's not good to keep all that bitterness and anger pent up, you know? Look, I know it's not really my place to say anything, but I also know nothing hurts worse than your first break-up, but you never know what might happen if you keep the doors of communication open, you know? Send him one of those Facebook messages or something. Tell Blaine and everyone we're voting for them every chance we get! And give Rachel our love!"

"I will Carole," he said through a yawn. "I hate to cut this short, but I have an early morning tomorrow. Isabelle's having me come in early to go over sketches before the regular nine o'clock meeting. Take care of Dad for me give my love to Finn."

With that he hung up, and even though he really was tired and had to work early, he figured it couldn't hurt to do a little digging. It'd stung to defriend Blaine—someone he'd called one of his best friends even after those first few weeks during the whole Karofsky thing. Kurt honestly didn't know how he'd get through the humiliation of being crowned prom queen, and the heartache of leaving everything he'd ever known without knowing Blaine was on the other side of the phone line…then all of a sudden he wasn't. No more dirty text messages. No more Skype calls. No one to share in his joy of finally being in the city of his dreams.

It was just easier to cut ties that way, but he figured a little Facebook stalking never hurt anyone.

He scrolled down Blaine's timeline. Congratulatory messages from family members, even Mike, Quinn, Ms. Pillsbury, Puck, and Mercedes. It made him nostalgic for the old days. Not the dumpster tosses or the slushies. Not the isolation, and definitely not being lost in someone's shadows, whether it be Rachel's or Blaine's, but their odd little family, with enough drama to fill two seasons of _Days of our Lives_ that gave him the blessing to be where he is now—yeah, he missed that.

There was one message, though. No picture. Just a light house. _Him_.

The first time Kurt had the bright idea to stalk Blaine's page, it had been shortly after Blaine's confession. Despite what Blaine had said a part of him still swore it had to have been Sebastian. Besides, even if it was Sebastian, there was no way Mr. CW Hair would keep quiet about it.

But he hadn't seen a message from Sebastian that night. Just this Eli person with a lighthouse picture and the message of _"hey sexy"._

Had it really been so horrible for Blaine that all it took was a hopeful icon of a lighthouse to make him stray? It was easy to blame Blaine, but then this…person with the congratulatory message, and Blaine's reply: "Thank you for the kind words, but I will always look back on what happened with regret. I'm deleting you from my friends-list, and I wish you well, but please respect my decision."

He did one last thing before shutting down his laptop, and clicked "friend request" below Blaine's profile picture (this one was Blaine belting out _Beauty School Drop-Out_ with something far more brutal and raw than Frankie Avalon had done in the movie). Kurt knew it was meant for him…Blaine used to be his Teenage Dream. Still was.

But things change. So do people. So do dreams.

What Blaine did was his own choice, but that didn't mean Kurt didn't cry himself to sleep at night making list upon list of everything he did to make Blaine feel like all it took was a beacon of companionship to make the loneliness he must've felt hurt just a little less.


	5. Chapter 5

_**The Brothahood**_

_We have to admit we groaned when we saw these three boys from Lima, Ohio (I mean, really, who names a town for the bean everyone hates. Yes, I know that's a country in Peru. It still doesn't excuse the name for the town. No disrespect intended towards our Peruvian readers, of course) introducing themselves at the contestant check in. _

_They announce who they are, and one of us might've blown Red Bull out of his nose, because come the fuck ON! That name was worse than the one Zack came up with for the girls in that one episode of Saved By the Bell where Jessie got hooked on caffeine pills. And that one dude seriously looked like he came straight from the cast of Godspell. Or Jesus Christ Superstar. We'll be surprised if Mel Gibson doesn't give him a call for Passion 2 (come on guys, you know it's coming. He needs money worse than the cast of Sing needs actual talent). _

_And then there's that one dude who is waaay too fond of his hair-product. He's the one who announces who they are, and already, flashbacks of Emblem 3 overstaying their welcome last year are dancing in our heads. _

_Then we noticed the guy from /savings was apparently family for one of the members and we kind of feared for an audition that consisted of nothing but variations of that jingle that just will not leave our heads._

_Curse you catchy jingles! Any suggestions for how to get rid of an ear-worm would be highly appreciated. And please for the love of all things holy do not respond with the lyrics of 'This is the Song That Never Ends.'_

_Ahem…right…on to the business at hand._

_It didn't surprise us at all to see Simon and LA less than enthused when they came on stage. Britney and Demi were barely able to contain their looks of pity for the member in the wheelchair. However when these three took on SexyBack and gave it a funky coffeehouse vibe, we were the first ones to stand up and applaud. _

_After all, it's a song that's not been done to death on reality singing competitions and after the never-ending parade of ballads that preceded them, Brothahood proved to be a welcome shot of energy into the show. (Look when we pray for the audition of CeCe "Leporad Print" Fay it's been a slow show night ok?) ._

_Over all, we're pretty confident about this trio's ability to get out boot camp (groups are always sorely under-represented) but stranger things have happened with this show. (Paige Thomas's image makeover anyone? Lady Gaga meets Grace Jones may work on someone but not on her) However, if they make it to the live rounds with the same name we will be shocked._

"_X Factor_ recaps?" Chase's voice startled Kurt so much he jumped up and slammed his knee on the underside of the conference table. Groaning, Kurt shot Chase a glare as he rubbed his knee.

"If these Gucci pants are torn Chase I swear to God…"

"You'll just steal another pair from The Closet same as the rest of us." Chase barely even blinked at the threat before falling back into the chair next to Kurt's. "Besides if you hide in here to read recaps of the _X Factor_ when you are supposed to be doing Isabelle's mid-afternoon coffee run then you get what you deserve."

"It's not even close to 2 o'clock yet," Kurt protested. He had certainly not been in here since the morning editorial board meeting. He still had plenty of time before he had to get Isabelle's coffee. He just needed to leave by 1:30. A quick glance down at his watch told him that it was in fact now 2:30. With a groan he lowered his head to the table. "I am so fired."

"Relax. Anna apparently called our Isabelle up for a meeting. She'll be so freaked out and second guessing herself she'll never notice."

Chase kicked his feet up on the conference table. Normally, Kurt would have shuddered at the disrespect to such a fine piece of furniture, but he had to admit Chase's purple snakeskin boots were something to be admired at all times.

"And besides I can't really blame you for media-stalking those cuties from Ohio last night. I'd be lying if I said I didn't understand the impulse."

"Chase they're in high school. I'm pretty sure that's illegal."

"Only if I put my fantasies in motion. A little looking never hurt anyone Hummel. I told you that."

"You've told me many things. Most of which I'm trying to forget."

"Well forget this part at your peril. Isabelle may adore you but if you don't have all her messages and mail sorted when she gets back from that meeting, it won't save you. If I were you I'd get my 18 year old ass out to my desk and do my actual job. And then I would ask my fabulously dressed, wiser co-worker for links to all the new Tumblrs devoted to that adorable boy band from my hometown that I clearly know since Lima is a tiny speck of dust even by Ohio standards. But that's just me. I'm sure you clearly have a plan and better ideas than I do." Chase straightened out the cuffs on his blue crushed velvet blazer.

"Chase…."

"Don't mention it." Chase held up his hand. "I'll just collect the gigantic favor you now owe me later. And I will collect. In fact I may have an idea for new content that you're going to help me support with Isabelle. Now shoo. You can expect a list of those links in your inbox before the end of the day."

"Are there really multiple Tumblrs?" Kurt asked, a bit weirded out that his old high school friends and ex were now Tumblr-famous. "It was only one audition."

"Oh little one. You'll see." Chase smirked as he made his way out of the conference room door. "Just don't search the tags. Unless you want to read fic about the one with the gel sleeping with his brother. And don't think you've avoided telling me all about how you know them Lima."

Kurt raced to the doorway to call after Chase's retreating back. "I never said I knew them."

"Of course you do. You're from Lima and you were in show choir. I don't think there's that many show choirs in Lima you wouldn't know them. "

"I never said I was in show choir."

"Your resume did." Chase turned around and smirked. "You really never wondered how Isabelle navigated your resume? She can barely figure out her email Hummel. Who do you think she had helping her before you came along? Oh and you also may want to make your Facebook page private. Teenage fangirls will find you in a heartbeat and you don't want that drama."

Chase made his way to the corner of the hallway but paused just before disappearing towards his own office. "You were right by the way. He _is _the cutest."

If there was one thing Blaine had learned from this entire experience so far was that when your phone was ringing constantly, it only hurt more when it wasn't the person you really wanted to talk to. Logically, he knew the short congratulatory text that Kurt sent was more than he deserved, but it didn't stop his heart from jumping every time the phone rang, or from breaking every time Kurt's picture didn't flash across the screen announcing his call.

He had hoped going back to school would at least slow down the rate of phone calls, but Blaine had forgotten he was now attending McKinley. Jacob Ben-Israel somehow figured out his phone number so his phone hadn't stopped buzzing all day. The creepiest, though, was from that awful person Sandy Ryerson that seemed particularly insistent on meeting him, apparently having forgotten they'd met before. And of course Cooper now was texting performance tips from his productive day's work of watching NYSNC, Backstreet Boys and New Kids videos all day on You Tube. When his phone buzzed for the 15th time in an hour, Blaine was tempted to throw it away without even glancing at the screen.

The ridiculous hope that Kurt was on the other end stopped him.

It wasn't Kurt. It likely would never be Kurt again but it was someone Blaine actually wanted to talk to.

"Hey there Rock Star." Quinn laughed in his ear. "Have your choice of groupies yet?"

"I think you meant to call Artie and not me."

"I already talked to Artie. He's working out a schedule to meet all his new _ladies_. I'd be worried if he hadn't mentioned Joe was coming along with him."

"Artie and Joe are _double dating_? How did I not know about this?"

"Because they're afraid you'll start crying at the mention of dating? Again?"

"That was a month ago. And I did that to you. Not in front of them."

"Blaine, don't you know by now there are no secrets when it comes to New Directions? With the possible exception of you three forming a boy band and auditioning for a reality show." In the background Blaine could hear people calling out Quinn's name as she likely was walking through Yale's campus. It did his heart good to know she had found a place where she could finally be happy.

"I didn't think we'd pass the audition. No point in getting everyone all excited for nothing."

"Hence telling Cooper. Because he's the personification of calm and collected thinking."

"Don't act like you haven't used his master class tips to get cast at Yale."

"Yeah as examples of what not to do. And don't change the subject. I get not telling everyone else but why not me Blaine? I thought we were closer than that."

At Artie's Christmas party, Quinn had cornered him almost as soon as he entered. Dragging him to the upstairs hall, she pulled him behind her into Mr. Abrams' office and hugged him. _"I am the last person to judge anyone when it comes to mistakes in a relationship. So if you want to talk, talk. Or we can hide up here and talk trash about Taylor Swift and Lindsay Lohan all night."_

"I just didn't want to disappoint everyone if we got cut because of something I did. I hate those looks."

"Blaine the last thing you are is a disappointment. The only way they weren't going to give you a yes was if you guys didn't go on stage at all. So tell me, when do I get to come to the show?"

"Quinn you know I can't tell you if we made it past boot camp."

"Of course you made it past boot camp. You were born to perform and Artie is a genius when it comes to strategy. Joe looks all sweet and laid back but he's stubborn as hell when he wants to be. You don't have to tell me you made it past boot camp. I know you did."

"What if we failed?"

"Then I'm coming home the day after that horrible mistake in judgment airs and we are drowning our sorrows in the biggest tub of ice cream we can buy. "

"Chocolate chip cookie dough?"

"Only because you'll give me puppy dog eyes until I say yes to it. Listen, I have to go to class and I bet you have glee. I'll call you tonight and we'll plan what week you want me to come out."

"I can't tell you if we made it past boot camp Quinn."

"We may be talking over the phone but you still can't lie to me Anderson. We're two of a kind remember?"

"I remember. And Quinn? I've missed you."

"I've missed you too. And we'll talk tonight. Really talk." Quinn paused for a second before dropping her voice to a whisper. "Rachel called me and told me Kurt texted you. Are you ok?"

"I'm…..fine. I think? It's weird. I don't know if he expected me to answer back. Or if he would be ok with me texting more. Or if he only did it because Rachel was being all Rachel. Maybe I'm more confused than fine?"

"I'll be on Skype tonight. We'll talk. Or you'll talk. I'll listen and give fabulous advice."


End file.
